PERUGIA and ASSISI

Perugia is the regional capital of Umbria and has a fascinating and historic old city centre. Just down the road is Assisi home of St Francis with its great religious buildings. Umbria is quieter and more relaxed than Tuscany and cheaper too. You’ll be able to visit historic hill towns like Orvieto and Todi. The area is full of wineries and potteries you can visit. Among the best wine producers is the Lungarotti wine company making Torgiano and Rubesco; stay at the Hotel Tre Vaselle … with its fine Umbrian cuisine. Perugia is just a two hour drive to Rome on a quiet Sunday morning; so you can do a potted version of the capital in a day while the streets are quiet. North of Perugia is Lake Trasimene with boat trips to islands.